Original subtitles

The story you are about to see

was inspired by actual events.

The names have been changed

to protect the innocent.

*

It was Tuesday.

The Santa Ana winds were blowing in Los Angeles.

My partner and I were working the day shift

out of robbery homicide

when the call came in at 8:20 AM.

Hispanic female discovered in an aqueduct near Echo Park.

Some believe the Santa Anas make people crazy.

Depression, suicide, murder.

The hot, dry air blows, they say anything can happen.

But they forget this is LA.

Anything happens anyway.

My name's Friday.

I'm a cop.

Division homicide said to call you, like,

I guess because it's a sex murder.

Who found the body?

Uh, couple kids riding bikes.

Did they disturb the body?

I doubt it, they seemed pretty shaken up,

their folks came and got them.

We'll need their names.

Do me a favor.

Move this perimeter all the way to the top of the ramp.

Start searching, find something interesting,

flag it for SID.

Body's down there.

Multiple stabbings of the abdomen.

Deep slashing cut to the throat.

Slashing cuts here, not too deep,

and there's mutilation of the vagina and buttocks.

Any semen?

Can't really tell.

Full rigor.

Blood on the skin is dry.

Been out here at least 12 hours.

Dumped her like garbage.

Well, not dumped.

Too much blood.

Say he drove in here,

killed her, drove out.

Good cover, high walls.

She screamed, nobody probably heard.

I'll run down previous rape murders,

see if this matches anything.

What?

It's a sex crime because that cop said so?

No, the evidence.

The evidence is telling you what you wanna see.

He made a comment, started you thinking that way.

Ligature marks, what does that tell you?

Tied her up.

Bruising on the fingers.

Means somebody held her wrists.

You see any defensive wounds on her hands?

No.

All right, somebody held her arms behind her back

while the other one used the knife.

Two killers doesn't mean it wasn't rape.

There's not much bleeding on the genital mutilation.

We'll have to see what the autopsy shows,

but I'll bet it was post mortem.

So you think they staged it to look like a sex crime.

That's my guess.

Throw us off?

Send a message to someone else.

We did this to her.

We can do it to you.

*

*

*

We ran the prints on your Jane Doe through AFIS,

didn't get a hit.

No match on any missing persons for the last 48 hours.

It's early, keep checking.

SID just called, we might have your murder weapon.

The knife?

Downstream.

Pulled up a kitchen carver with an eight inch blade.

Doesn't look like it's been there long.

Joe.

Autopsy's finished.

All right, let them know we're coming down.

I want you two to go back, walk the aqueduct,

both directions.

SID's been through it already.

Notice the Santa Anas last night?

Slept like a rock.

Well, I'm thinking the wind might have scattered evidence

further than we think.

We're looking for clothing,

personal effects, anything that might help ID this girl.

Elana, you speak Spanish,

you be my second on this.

It's a division homicide.

RHD's gonna take the case?

Rampart's slammed right now,

we caught it, we'll close it.

All right.

Female, Hispanic, approximately 35 years old, Jane Doe.

Cause of death, five sharp force injuries

into the chest, neck, and abdomen.

Blade severed the aorta in two places.

Now there's no rape, no bruising on the breasts,

no bite marks so I agree with you about the sex crime staging.

What can you tell me about her life, Sanjay?

Well, given the stretch marks and pelvis flexion

I'd say she's had at least one child.

Take a look at her hands.

Calluses, dirty nails, working class.

And she may have been working on her back.

Early stages of syphilis

contracted within the last six months.

High risk job.

If the pimp doesn't kill you,

something else will.

An STD doesn't necessarily make her a hooker.

True, but she also has extensive scarring in the uterus.

An abortion.

Within the last year.

Real coat hanger job.

*

How far do you think we've gone?

I don't know.

Half a mile.

I think we should keep going.

I'm not quitting yet, dog.

No, I'm talking about going in the other direction.

*

Coop.

What?

Check made out to Maria Ramos,

dated yesterday.

from Byron Balasco, 3709 Graciella.

Yeah, I wrote this.

Who's Maria Ramos?

Our maid.

She's legal.

IRS busted me on our nanny,

I learned my lesson.

We're not here about your taxes, Mr. Belasco,

we're investigating a homicide.

Is this Maria Ramos?

Oh, man.

Yeah, that's Maria.

She was just here yesterday.

What time'd she leave?

5:30, I think.

She'd asked me for a lift to the bus stop.

The one on Franklin?

Yeah, but I'd just gotten back from the gym, you know.

So you made her walk.

Yeah.

You must have an address and phone number for Miss Ramos.

No, she always called me from a payphone.

I thought you said she was legal.

Maria showed me her green card.

Made a copy of it just in case.

It's about all I have.

She's just the maid, you know.

Just mopped the floor and left.

She called Belasco last week from a payphone

at 8th and Alvarado.

Let's get some people out there with her picture.

Anything jump on this guy?

Belasco has no priors.

His wife had a DUI arrest last year.

A guy down the block says Maria passed his house before six

and she was heading for Franklin.

I checked with all the bus drivers on the route

and no one remembers seeing her get on last night.

Coroner places the TOD around six

which means she was grabbed right after work

in the Beachwood area.

Off the street like that,

could be random.

Well, random kidnapping murders

are usually about rape or robbery,

this was neither.

That's from the green card.

Talk to next of kin.

*

Maria.

Maria Ramos.

What do you want?

Do you know this woman?

Should I?

Her green card number matches your name and address.

You've gotta be kidding me.

I fixed this already.

Your green card was stolen.

Over a year ago.

Had to go to every DMV, INS,

LAPD in the city about it.

Wait.

Here.

They gave me a new one.

See, that's mine.

And that's what it said.

It's a match.

I apologize, Ma'am, we've made a mistake.

So why don't you fix the mistake?

What'd you say?

Take it easy, not Immigration.

Since Maria Ramos is back to being Jane Doe

we should check the phony ID with Immigration.

See how the T isn't quite solid,

that little gap between the lines?

That's one tell.

And this.

That's a misalignment from an inkjet printer.

The forger pulled the old INS seal off the internet.

All this means what?

It means every card with these same mistakes

can be connected back to a single counterfeit printing.

Like matching a tread to a tire.

Basically.

But look, this isn't the actual card.

I can't tell which flaw is from the counterfeit press

and which is from the copier.

You're not testifying, what do you got?

About a year ago near Tucson

border patrol found a truck filled with dead illegals,

22 people suffocated.

I remember.

A few people made it off the truck alive.

Your victim might have been one of them.

How's that?

We caught some of the people that got away,

they all had this card on them.

One of the flaws is the same.

It's a 50/50 match.

I'll take those odds.

Where'd they get picked up?

A church downtown.

Saint Steven's.

This church, Saint Steven's, may be a solid lead.

The place is known to harbor illegals.

So check it out.

My contact at Immigration said it wasn't worth the headache,

said the priest will raise a stink if he feels threatened.

All we wanna do is talk to the guy.

Said it requires a delicate touch.

Well, that means you're out.

All right, I'll take this one.

We do outreach to families who have recently entered the US.

We offer them sanctuary and we help them to become legal.

They think we're with Immigration.

Oh, they've swept through here before.

She went by the name Maria Ramos.

What happened?

We found her in an aqueduct.

She was stabbed to death.

God.

I feel terrible.

We don't know who she is, Father.

Ana Morales.

She came to our church about three months ago.

Stayed a couple of weeks.

Any idea who might have done this to her?

I don't know.

Ana never said much.

We helped her find some cleaning work

and uh, got her an apartment.

We'll need an address.

Was Miss Morales a prostitute?

Ana was a good woman, Detective.

A hard worker.

She was saving money to bring her son from Honduras.

That's really not an answer.

Good people like Ana flee poor countries,

they come here and are treated like criminals.

They're not bad.

Just desperate.

*

When a person dies they leave their life behind like an echo.

Ana Morales' apartment had roach traps in every corner

and an ammonia smell from too much cleaning.

It meant she didn't like living in an East LA tenement.

I didn't blame her for keeping four locks on the door,

bars on the windows,

and her valuables well hidden.

*

How much?

Three hundred.

*

This must be her kid.

How many times we gotta hear about a woman

leaving her nine children to come north

for a better paycheck?

The sign on the building in the background.

It's a phone number.

*

The mural said "pride in our area".

Only I didn't see much of that.

What I did see was sweat shops,

broken windows, corner drug deals.

New arrivals usually landed here first.

People like Ana Morales.

*

*

That's the building.

Let's take a look around.

*

That's where they took the picture.

Wanna introduce ourselves?

No, I don't wanna spook 'em.

Let's call Immigration and Customs Enforcement instead.

Make it look like a routine sweep.

We'll piggyback their raid.

All right.

Freeze, freeze!

Go!

Down!

Don't move!

Get down!

We gotta clear these buildings.

All right, let's check this one first.

I said stay down.

*

*

Hey, hey, hey, hey.

I'll take care of this guy, let's get 'em some clothes.

You're gonna have to talk to them later on.

*

They're all undocumented,

said they didn't know about the brothel.

No kidding.

We find out who's in charge?

Not yet.

Keep leaning on them, somebody knows.

All right.

They're scared to talk.

Show them the victim's picture,

maybe that'll persuade them.

Twenty women living in one room.

Forced into prostitution.

Couldn't get much worse.

Here without means

surrounded by a foreign language in a foreign country,

Ana Morales would have leaned on somebody.

*

It's the same way a good cop reaches out

to a reluctant witness.

You gain their confidence,

let them know things are gonna be okay.

Do it right, they'll tell you everything.

Erika.

Justice.

You understand?

*

Si.

*

Erika and Ana met at a factory in Juarez.

The coyote who brought them over the border

was a guy named Eduardo.

How much did she owe?

Well, he charged for about three grand.

Made her work it off, you know,

sometimes 10, 11 men a night.

The girls turned in condom wrappers

as payment on their debt.

And Eduardo kept track.

He held them over a year.

Ana got out, like four months ago.

She escaped through a crawlspace in the floor.

She know anything about the murder?

She says Eduardo warned them.

Any girl who escaped

he would hunt down and kill.

This why Eduardo kill Ana.

We've got nothing that ties Eduardo

directly to the murder.

He kept a dozen girls as sex slaves.

Since when is that a walk?

You think any of those women will ever set foot

in a court room?

Well, Erika made the ID on his mug shot,

let's just arrest the guy and make him sweat

about this Ana Morales.

Ah, unless he lawyers up.

And then we're out of luck.

The guy's been in the system before.

He knows what the score is.

We need him to admit he did the kill.

So what are you thinking?

You undercover.

Joe, I'm Puerto Rican.

He would never read me as a Mexican.

Besides, Eduardo's not gonna incriminate himself

to a complete stranger.

Yeah, you're probably right.

But I'll bet he'd believe Erika.

*

We send her in with a wire

under the pretense of paying off her debts.

She'll say she's scared,

doesn't wanna wind up like Ana.

If Eduardo bites we nail him for the murder.

Push his buttons you'll get him for two murders,

Ana and the girl.

We'll cover her from all angles,

she'll never be out of sight.

Now, Erika's willing, I say we take the shot.

Why not start with a warrant?

Eduardo knows about the bust on the brothel.

Whatever cartel or syndicate he's working for

is gonna know soon enough.

We can expect him to act on this.

We hesitate, our guy's in Mexico.

Is SIS on board?

They can pull it together in time?

Yeah.

What do you think?

I think the guy's a vicious thug.

*

It's not my call.

Means you don't like it.

We all know with a sting like this there's risk.

You know I'll do it right.

Forgetting murder for a minute,

even if Eduardo admits to extortion

we still take him down.

Buys us more time,

builds a stronger case for the homicide.

*

You're saying this is the only way.

Yeah.

Do it.

*

Listen.

SIS spotted Eduardo entering the store.

When are we going in?

Three hours.

Joe knows what he's doing.

The guy makes a threat we go in.

It's not complicated.

Not until he pulls a knife.

Or a gun.

We're gonna be right there.

You got nothing to worry about.

Erika.

*

*

Store's been closed all day.

Two Hispanic guys went in earlier,

one of them looked like your boy, Eduardo.

Maybe the other one's our second killer.

They haven't left yet.

Good, let's get in position.

How we doing?

Four king 20, we're green to go.

Four king 21, we're good.

*

Tell her to do exactly what we told her.

Follow the script, she'll be okay.

We got people all over the place.

Okay.

Test the wire.

Justice.

*

Can't see much through the front.

Keep your eye on the girl.

Ten four.

*

Coop, where is she?

On the approach passing four king 21.

Jimmy, you see her?

She's going into the store, I got her.

*

Move in, move in!

*

Go!

*

*

We were here all day.

Then how'd the shooter get inside

while you were watching the place?

There was a lot of traffic earlier.

Buses were stacked up,

we had to switch our observation point a few times.

You missed it.

Yeah.

Yo.

Wanna take a look?

We found a .38 revolver back here,

all six shots fired.

We get a positive ID of the victims yet?

Yeah.

This one's Eduardo.

Thinking this guy got capped first,

two shots square to the chest.

That would have put him down fast.

This one tries to run.

Takes two in the back.

Where's the sixth?

Door jamb above your head.

All right, the shooter was already in here

waiting for them.

Explains why SIS didn't see them enter.

You think these guys got hit

because of the raid on the brothel?

Well, if Eduardo's cartel thought he was a liability,

maybe.

Doesn't look like a robbery.

No.

Not even close.

Joe, come here.

Look familiar?

Maria Ramos.

Took the card off her body.

Probably meant to sell it again.

Bag it, maybe SID can pull some prints.

Border map.

California, Arizona.

GPS locator.

For navigating the border.

No coyote leaves home without one.

Looks like the VCR's recording.

Meanwhile they go to the back room.

Our shooter steps out,

kills them both.

That's our shooter.

He's about 15.

A cartel used a wannabe gang banger?

Bring in Erika.

You know him?

Look again.

Don't lie to me.

You tell her I'll put her in jail if she lies to me.

Erika.

She says she doesn't care if she goes to prison.

He gave her justice.

*

There, that's about as clean as it's gonna get.

Okay, I'll take it.

From what we got off canvas

nobody's crying about Eduardo being dead.

Don't expect any help if the shooter's

a neighborhood kid.

Listen, the age progression software,

can you use it on this?

Oh, yeah, sure.

It won't be perfect.

I don't need it perfect.

How old do you wanna make him?

About six.

Six?

You wanna make him younger?

Can you do that?

I can try.

Give me a couple hours.

Okay.

SID pulled two sets of prints

off the green card in the desk.

Ana Morales and Eduardo Caneda.

Trace blood on the back of the card A neg.

Victim's blood type,

puts Eduardo at the scene.

Looks like we got our guys.

Big surprise, now who killed them?

Humanitarian of the year.

The ID on the second dead guy's Manuel Caneda.

Eduardo's brother?

Cousin, small time rap sheet,

customs had him flagged for a drug mule.

Anything on the .38?

Sold over a year ago,

prints weren't in the system.

Look, our shooter.

Formative years.

I've seen this kid before.

The picture's almost ten years old.

See?

Good work.

Yes, that's her son.

His name's Miguel.

When did he get here?

About a month ago.

Traveled the trains up from Honduras.

Ana told him where to find me

and I helped him get in touch with her.

You didn't say this before.

No, I apologize.

But why didn't you?

Out of concern for the boy.

When I heard what happened to Ana

I thought I should tell Miguel myself.

Know where he is?

I'm not gonna answer that.

Father, I have to inform you

anything you say in here now

is admissible in court.

I know my rights, Detective.

But protecting these people

is the mission of this church.

Protecting someone who murdered two men.

That's right.

Who were they?

It's not about who.

We're gonna have to look around.

The church is open to everyone.

But the rectory is a private property

of the Catholic church.

You'll need a warrant.

I know you think you're helping Miguel.

I have to do my job, Detective.

Father, Father, he committed a mortal sin.

He breached divine law.

And the price he'll pay

is the eternal separation from God

unless you help him make it right.

I know my obligation under God.

And you know my obligation.

He turns himself in,

he gets a fair shake in court.

But if I come back with a warrant

and find that you've given him sanctuary

I will arrest both of you.

Now I hope it doesn't come to that.

*

What was that all about?

Parochial school left an impression.

You're telling me you believe in divine law?

Eternal separation?

Joe, why are we going after this kid?

What's the harm if he disappears,

goes back to Honduras?

That's not what we do.

We're trying to arrest a kid

who lost his mother.

And then killed two men.

And they didn't deserve it?

I had a case once, Amelia Deans.

Had an old man used to like to knock her around.

Broke her nose, her jaw, knocked the teeth out,

put her in the hospital once a month.

Then one day Amelia got tired of it,

put a bullet in his brain.

Believe me.

There wasn't one person who didn't think

the son of a bitch deserved it.

So what'd you do?

What do you think I did?

*

What I didn't tell Macias was that I had arrested Amelia Deans

21 years ago.

And I still thought about the case.

*

SIS is sitting on the church.

If the kid tries to leave they'll pick him up.

How do you eat this stuff?

It's cheap.

So what do you think?

Look, the law doesn't make any exceptions

for the church to harbor a fugitive,

but you don't even know if he's there.

He's there.

Priest didn't exactly say it,

but he said it.

There isn't enough probable cause to get a warrant

to enter a private building on church grounds,

and even with a warrant

if you're wrong and the kid isn't there

we'll get lousy press and maybe even a lawsuit.

Over what?

They'll call it an illegal search

and say we violated the fourth amendment rights

of the Catholic church.

On that alone good luck finding any judge to sign off on it.

A neighborhood vigil is underway at this hour

to protest police efforts in arresting a 14 year old boy

accused of murder.

The man organizing the protests, Father Rafael Sosa,

spoke to reporters earlier today.

Miguel Morales defended himself

against the men who murdered his mother.

And tried to kill him.

Should have heard Joe today

trying to guilt a priest into giving up Miguel.

Is that what I did?

Mhmm, sounded like it to me.

I just reminded him of his duty

not to let Miguel burn in hell.

He's gonna be holed up there for months.

Priest will do the right thing.

Yeah, you're so confident.

Robbery homicide, Friday.

*

Miguel gave his confession

and received the sacrament.

He's ready to turn himself in.

Saw you on the news tonight.

Then you know how many people are behind him.

Mirandize him.

You're on the job long enough

you're eventually gonna make an arrest you don't like.

Mine was Amelia Deans.

My partner was about to make hers.

*

His mom told him in case she died

so he could go to the police.

The day before his mother was killed

he went to see Eduardo at the store.

He had to be a man,

he had to protect his mother.

Eduardo said he'd forget about the debt

if he could talk to her.

*

What did he say?

He begs his mother in Heaven to...

to forgive him.

Lucy is having a tough time with this.

Worry about your indictment,

not my detective.

From what the kid said,

it's first degree murder.

Murder of a murderer.

Jury will never convict,

go for a plea.

*

Well, I saw some leftover pizza in the fridge.

I think that's like, two weeks old.

I'll see if I can find something else.

Shorty needs some real grub.

Gracias.

What was that?

Nothing, he's just asking for a sandwich.

Docket number 632891.

State of California

versus Miguel Morales.

Slumming today, Mr. Torres?

Pro bono.

How magnanimous.

The charge is two counts first degree murder.

Do we have a plea?

My client pleads not guilty, Your Honor.

Your Honor, the defendant is an illegal alien

and poses a significant flight risk.

The people ask for remand.

He came all this way,

now he wants to leave?

Father Rafael Sosa of Saint Steven's Catholic Church

has agreed to post bail for Miguel

and assume temporary guardianship.

These are serious charges.

The defendant's being tried as an adult.

Which is outrageous.

My client belongs in juvenile court, Your Honor.

You already lost that fight, Mr. Torres.

In light of the indictment the defendant is hereby remanded,

bail is denied.

*

He's a 14 year old kid

and you're gonna send him to Pelican Bay

for the rest of his life?

Not my call.

You can talk to the DA.

He's firm on this,

it's an election year.

Oh, he's gotta look tough on immigration.

Those who exploit illegals

and crimes committed by illegals,

it's zero tolerance.

This kid is not politics.

Look, he's got a good lawyer

and a shot at beating this, okay?

I've got my work cut out for me.

What are you talking about?

You have a confession.

This guy Torres took the case for one reason.

He thinks he can win.

*

Excuse me.

You saw Miguel?

Did Chang tell you what they're doing?

We need to talk.

Now I brought you into RHD

because you made major cases for your division.

Your arrest record was stellar.

But here it's a whole different level.

And I gotta know if you can handle it.

Get wrapped up in these cases,

maybe he's a good kid,

maybe he isn't.

All we know for sure,

he killed two people.

That's all that matters.

For cops, yeah.

You don't like it,

go be a social worker.

Or go volunteer for Father Sosa.

For the record I think the DA's making a mistake.

They could do a lot better with a lesser charge.

And that has nothing to do with what I'm talking about?

Sometimes I'm pragmatic.

Oh.

So you set up the operation,

the suspects under surveillance.

And the purpose of this sting

was to arrest Eduardo

and Manuel Caneda.

That's correct.

No further questions, Your Honor.

Lieutenant Friday, how would you characterize

the murder of Miguel's mother,

Ana Morales?

I'd say it was brutal.

Because Eduardo and Manuel Caneda

stabbed her repeatedly,

and then sexually mutilated her body.

You say you were planning on arresting them

for the murder.

Yes.

But to do that you needed an admission of guilt

so you planned a sting.

Lieutenant, if the sting had failed

would you definitely have arrested them?

Not at that time.

So the men who killed Miguel's mother,

they would have been free to walk the streets

and continue their extortion and sex slave operation?

Our efforts would have been ongoing.

Walk the streets.

Yes or no.

Yes.

In Miguel Morale's confession

did he say that he feared for his life from these men?

He said Eduardo Caneda was looking for him, yes.

Lieutenant Friday.

Where do you think Eduardo and Manuel

would have dumped Miguel's body

after they stabbed and mutilated him?

Objection.

Withdrawn.

Detective Macias.

Is the LAPD in the habit of risking the lives of civilians

to make an arrest?

No.

We do everything we can to minimize the risk

to the public.

Then why was Erika Sanchez used in the sting?

She volunteered to help us catch Eduardo Caneda.

We felt the only way he would incriminate himself

was by talking to somebody he already knew.

But your point is the LAPD's motto,

to protect and serve,

only applies to immigrants of legal status.

Objection.

Sustained.

Mr. Torres, enough.

I'll rephrase.

Did you send an illegal alien into harm's way

with total disregard for her safety?

She was under constant surveillance.

Could she have been killed by Eduardo and Manuel Caneda

before you got to her?

It was a possibility, yes.

Then how can you honestly say you were doing your job?

Nothing further.

Your Honor, permission to redirect?

Go ahead.

Detective Macias,

did you read Miguel Morales his rights

when you placed him under arrest?

Yes, I did.

And we also reviewed his rights before his taped confession

and he waived them there as well.

And he claimed that the only reason he killed both victims

was because he feared for his own life.

That they would kill him like they did his mother.

That's what he said.

It's on the tape.

After he was Mirandized

did Miguel Morales say anything to you

that was not included on the videotape?

Anything at all?

Mm, not, not really.

He asked for something to eat.

Did he ever mention anything to you about getting justice?

*

Detective Macias.

*

Um, Miguel said he was glad he killed them.

He told me he had to get justice.

That they deserved to die.

*

*

*

Have you reached a verdict?

We have not, Your Honor.

We believe we're deadlocked in our decision.

You think if you had time for further deliberation

you could reach a verdict?

We do not, Your Honor.

Then I have no choice.

I hereby declare this a mistrial.

*

*

So they cut a deal.

Voluntary manslaughter.

Two counts.

He will probably do seven years.

Smart move.

Did you lean on Chang?

You think I'd do that?

You never told me you spoke Spanish.

The nuns beat four years of Latin into me

when I was a kid.

A lot of words in Spanish are similar,

it wasn't hard to figure out.

You were good in there.

You were objective,

you did your job with integrity.

That's what I expect out of my detectives.

Just the facts.

Joe.

You don't have to worry about me.

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Erika Sanchez is currently being held

as a material witness by the Bureau of Immigration

and Customs Enforcement.

Their investigation of Eduardo Caneda's smuggling operation

is ongoing.

Father Rafael Sosa was tried and convicted

of obstruction of justice.

He was given a suspended sentence

and one year probation.

He is currently appealing.

Miguel Morales was sentenced to seven years

for voluntary manslaughter.

He escaped custody while being held

at the California Youth Authority in Los Angeles.

He currently remains at large.

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